Black Night, Gold Pips (Luke, Ruth, Leonard)

[Ruth Sigurdsdottir]

[Viking Ship]

"Taktu ekki Áƒ¶xi, Áƒ¾Áƒº ert aÁƒ° Áƒ¾urfa aÁƒ° klifra." The big captain said, and pointed up.

Suspended from the mast of the longship was a tiny leather bag suspended by a rope. It was lashed at by the rain and wind.

The crew began urging her towards the mast, all of them exchanging rough jokes and laughs.

Viking Ship - Holodeck 1

Ruth followed the Vikings eyes and went along with the tide of rough sailors towards the mast.

She spied the little leather bag at the top with her keen eyes despite the rain lashing down on them and the rough seas.

"Kannski ég Áƒ¦tti bara aÁƒ° nota Áƒ¶xi til aÁƒ° hÁƒ¶ggva niÁƒ°ur mastriÁƒ°?!" she grinned.  It certainly was one option to just hack down the mast with an axe, but she didn't favour her chances against a crew of irate Vikings, much as she were one of them, sheer numbers would be against her.

Weighing up her options and finallly twigging that this was a test she muttered under her breath '...if they weren't my superior officers, I'd want to kill them right now...'

Weighing up her options she found a loop of dry rope the deck and throwing it around the mast and catching it in her other hand she started moving it up the mast, pulling herself up and locking her legs to stop sliding back down.

Ruth finally reached the top and carefully held onto the rope with her right hand and tugged the bag free with her left.  Holding the ties of the bag carefully in her teeth she braced the instep of her boots against the mast and slid down the length of it using the rope as a brake.

Reaching the bottom she threw the rope to one side, tugged down her tunic then opened the leather bag.  She tipped it up and two half pips fell into her hand.

Raising one eyebrow she muttered "Well, well, well...trial by water if not by fire..." she said to herself popping them back into the bag and taking her hair in both hands to try to wring out some of the wet.

She tapped her commbadge.

"Lt. Commander Sigurdsdottir to Captain Lafayette and Commander Stafford, where would you like us to put into port?  It's rather wet out here and I'm sure you don't want your Chief Science Officer catching pneumonia?!"

She thought the cheeky approach might be forgiven at this time of morning.  All she wanted was to be warm and to drink a scalding hot mug of Ratkajino.  '...and to throw axes at something so I don't throw them at the Command Staff for this!' she chuckled to herself.

[Constance Lafayette]

The Athena swung around and came in at full impulse, slowing as it neared Ensign Scott's shuttle,

"Ensign Scott. You have been cleared to re-docking in the shuttle bay." The communications officer on the bridge reported in a casual tone.

[Ready Room]

Constance looked to Luke, "I think we've left her out in the cold long enough Commander, don't you?"
She punctuated the sentence with a little wink and took another sip.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

Viking Ship - Holodeck 1

"Lt. Commander Sigurdsdottir to Captain Lafayette and Commander Stafford, where would you like us to put into port?  It's rather wet out here and I'm sure you don't want your Chief Science Officer catching pneumonia?!"

She thought the cheeky approach might be forgiven at this time of morning.  All she wanted was to be warm and to drink a scalding hot mug of Ratkajino.  '...and to throw axes at something so I don't throw them at the Command Staff for this!' she chuckled to herself.

[Ready Room]

"Quite right, captain." Stafford said to Lafayette, and then tapped his own commbadge. "=/\=Stafford to Lieutenant Commander Siggurdsdottir. Commander, kindly inform the helmsmen he is to bend oars for home. Get yourself below decks and eat some fish stew or something. Or you can simply end the program. Congratulations, Siggurdsdottir."

[Leonard T. Scott]

The Athena swung around and came in at full impulse, slowing as it neared Ensign Scott's shuttle,

"Ensign Scott. You have been cleared to re-docking in the shuttle bay." The communications officer on the bridge reported in a casual tone.

...

[Shuttlecraft]

"Commencing docking procedures now," Scott replied.

The ensign landed the craft and then exited. Before heading back to his quarters, he tapped his combadge.

"Ensign Scott to Captain Lafayette. Is there anything else you need from me, ma'am?"=/\=

[Ruth Sigurdsdottir]

[Ready Room]

"Quite right, captain." Stafford said to Lafayette, and then tapped his own commbadge. "=/\=Stafford to Lieutenant Commander Siggurdsdottir. Commander, kindly inform the helmsmen he is to bend oars for home. Get yourself below decks and eat some fish stew or something. Or you can simply end the program. Congratulations, Siggurdsdottir."

Holodeck 1

=/\=Lt. Comm. Siggurdsdottir to Comm. Stafford.  Acknowledged Sir, and thank you. Terminating programme.  Sigurdsdottir out.

"Megi Freya leiÁƒ°a ferÁƒ°ir Áƒ¾Áƒ­nar..." Ruth muttered to the captain of the longboat, who nodded.  "Computer, terminate programme."

Ruth squelched damply to the door and leaving pools of water behind her went to the turbolift, got herself a shower in her quarters and changed her uniform, carefully pinning on the extra pips and grinning to herself.  Just wait till Will saw her now!